You will be rewarded a maximum of 3 points if I judge your work to be above average. You will receive 2 points if your work is average, that is it may have a few minor mistakes in some of the answers but demonstrates correct grammar and indicates that some, but not all, of the answers, are acceptable and well expressed. You will earn only 1 point if you simply answered the questions and/or if you use poor grammar and if there are signs that you have not read the material on which your answers are based.
Note: Like other plays we have dealt with, the construction of this play is unique and often challenging to readers. It generally works well on the stage but not so well in the study. So, the questions posed about the construction of the play do not easily follow Ball’s method of analysis. So, I have taken the liberty to change up some of the questions.
1. You may identify the stasis in the play but it isn’t necessarily at the beginning of the play. Where is it and who does it involve? NOTE: Do not assume that the stasis of the play is the same as the stasis of the video version that you are required to see. Only discuss the play in this and answers to the following questions. The stasis of the play takes place in Crown Heights, Brooklyn in 1991. During this time period, there is tension between the Black community and the Jewish community because of a car accident in which a young African American boy was killed while riding his bike and a Jewish ambulance came for the Jews hurt in the event, but left the boy. Later, a Jewish man in his twenties was killed in retaliation.
2. Ball points out that the intrusion sometimes occurs late in the dramatic action. What is the intrusion that breaks the stasis in Fires in the MIrror and how is it broken? Because the play consists of a group of interviews after the information of the tension-filled setting is given, the intrusion could be the first interview in which the topic of identity is touched on by Ntozake Shange. She openly speaks about what shapes a person’s identity, and the concept of identity encompasses the play as well as the people in it. The intrusion could be any other interview as well that shapes what the piece is trying to cover.. In that case, the intrusion of the play is Aaron M, Bernstein’s “mirrors” interview. Smith interviews him at Cambridge Massachusetts and he speaks on mirrors not “distorting.” Smith’s inclusion of this could lead the audience to infer that these interviews are like mirrors, showing us the different types of people and their points of view.
3. Why do the events of the play take place at this particular time and place? In other words, what is the unique factor that is out of the ordinary that causes a turn of events to take place? Hint: the unique factor may have something to do with you? How does the title figure in your answer? The unique factor of the play can be the different interviews and characters being seen. The interviews somehow mold together to offer different perspectives and different events that make up the play and almost show a main idea despite the diverse switches in character. They lead the play towards the end, in which the audience may feel a sense that something is wrong with the way things are in our society. The title Fires in the Mirror ties into my answer because it conveys the different attitudes, personalities, and perspectives seen in the “mirror,” or more specifically, the interviews.
4. State the dramatic questions that must be answered by the end of the play? (Ordinarily, the dramatic question shares a close connection with the intrusion.) The dramatic questions that must be answered in the play are: Will the right justice be done? Will the unrest settle between the Jewish and Black community?
5. Use the narrator of the work to answer the questions concerning character. Ball says, a character is revealed by what he/she does, ie. The dramatic actions that are taken. Examine what these particular characters wants. The wants of a character often encounter obstacles that get in the way of achieving those wants. Ball says there are 4 kinds of obstacles that frustrate the wants of a character. They are: a. Me against myself, b. Me against another individual, c. Me against society (that is law, social norms, etc.) and, d. Me against fate, the universe, natural forces, God or the gods. In answering these questions be sure to point to the particular obstacles that demonstrate these obstacles facing the narrator. From the way in which the play is set up, the narrator may want for the audience to see this as more than just a feud against two communities. The narrator, assuming it is Smith, wants the audience to take something from the collage of different interviews, such as being able to see the “bigger picture.” This in turn may be the “me vs. society,” conflict.
6. The most important information in most plays takes place during theatrical moments. Identify the most theatrical moments in Fires in the Mirror. The most theatrical moments in Fires in the Mirror are when Anonymous Young Man #1 speaks about the events that took place the day Gavin Cato was killed, Michael S. Miller’s interview, “Heil Hitler,” Anonymous Young Man #2’s interview, “Bad Boy,” Norman Rosenbaum’s “Sixteen Hour Difference,” interview and Carmel Cato’s interview, “Lingering.” When Young Man #1 speaks about Cato’s death, he talks about how the driver was drunk and pretending to be hurt so he could leave the scene on the ambulance. His interview ends with him saying, “ain’t never gonna be no justice.” Whomever’s side the audience is on when it comes to the subject, or whether they believe this setting is the product of problems on both sides, this interview shows the “where” of where the Black community is coming from. Michael S. Miller’s interview talks about how he heard black people saying “Heil Hitler,” at Gavin Cato’s funeral. He said in response to the remarks that he heard that “The hatred is so deep seated, and the hated knows no boundaries.” This showed the audience the tension between the communities, and the extent to which the problems were going. Anonymous Young Man #2’s interview was theatrical because of the underlying things he said. He spoke about the sixteen-year-old boy everyone thought killed Rosenbaum, and said that because he was an athlete that he had no business or reason to kill him. But then he said, “That’s between me and my Creator.” For a moment, this can lead the audience to believe something he either wants us to or that however he knew the sixteen-year-old boy didn’t do it was between himself and God. Norman Rosenbaum’s interview after sixteen hours shows him as calmer, but the theatrical part of this is how he explains how he began to worry about his brother’s safety after what happened to Cato, asking questions like, “Are you sure.” It revealed a human aspect of him that the audience might not catch the first time. Finally, Carmel Cato’s interview has to be the most theatrical, and it is probably why Smith ordered his last of the interviews. His anger as well as his sadness can be either read or seen through Smith’s interpretation on stage. His last words we are able to have from the interview are, “No there’s nothing to hide, you can repeat every word I say.” That suddenly makes it all the more real despite it being reenacted in a play.
Note: Like other plays we have dealt with, the construction of this play is unique and often challenging to readers. It generally works well on the stage but not so well in the study. So, the questions posed about the construction of the play do not easily follow Ball’s method of analysis. So, I have taken the liberty to change up some of the questions.
1. You may identify the stasis in the play but it isn’t necessarily at the beginning of the play. Where is it and who does it involve? NOTE: Do not assume that the stasis of the play is the same as the stasis of the video version that you are required to see. Only discuss the play in this and answers to the following questions.
The stasis of the play takes place in Crown Heights, Brooklyn in 1991. During this time period, there is tension between the Black community and the Jewish community because of a car accident in which a young African American boy was killed while riding his bike and a Jewish ambulance came for the Jews hurt in the event, but left the boy. Later, a Jewish man in his twenties was killed in retaliation.
2. Ball points out that the intrusion sometimes occurs late in the dramatic action. What is the intrusion that breaks the stasis in Fires in the MIrror and how is it broken?
Because the play consists of a group of interviews after the information of the tension-filled setting is given, the intrusion could be the first interview in which the topic of identity is touched on by Ntozake Shange. She openly speaks about what shapes a person’s identity, and the concept of identity encompasses the play as well as the people in it. The intrusion could be any other interview as well that shapes what the piece is trying to cover.. In that case, the intrusion of the play is Aaron M, Bernstein’s “mirrors” interview. Smith interviews him at Cambridge Massachusetts and he speaks on mirrors not “distorting.” Smith’s inclusion of this could lead the audience to infer that these interviews are like mirrors, showing us the different types of people and their points of view.
3. Why do the events of the play take place at this particular time and place? In other words, what is the unique factor that is out of the ordinary that causes a turn of events to take place? Hint: the unique factor may have something to do with you? How does the title figure in your answer?
The unique factor of the play can be the different interviews and characters being seen. The interviews somehow mold together to offer different perspectives and different events that make up the play and almost show a main idea despite the diverse switches in character. They lead the play towards the end, in which the audience may feel a sense that something is wrong with the way things are in our society. The title Fires in the Mirror ties into my answer because it conveys the different attitudes, personalities, and perspectives seen in the “mirror,” or more specifically, the interviews.
4. State the dramatic questions that must be answered by the end of the play? (Ordinarily, the dramatic question shares a close connection with the intrusion.)
The dramatic questions that must be answered in the play are: Will the right justice be done? Will the unrest settle between the Jewish and Black community?
5. Use the narrator of the work to answer the questions concerning character. Ball says, a character is revealed by what he/she does, ie. The dramatic actions that are taken. Examine what these particular characters wants. The wants of a character often encounter obstacles that get in the way of achieving those wants. Ball says there are 4 kinds of obstacles that frustrate the wants of a character. They are: a. Me against myself, b. Me against another individual, c. Me against society (that is law, social norms, etc.) and, d. Me against fate, the universe, natural forces, God or the gods. In answering these questions be sure to point to the particular obstacles that demonstrate these obstacles facing the narrator.
From the way in which the play is set up, the narrator may want for the audience to see this as more than just a feud against two communities. The narrator, assuming it is Smith, wants the audience to take something from the collage of different interviews, such as being able to see the “bigger picture.” This in turn may be the “me vs. society,” conflict.
6. The most important information in most plays takes place during theatrical moments. Identify the most theatrical moments in Fires in the Mirror.
The most theatrical moments in Fires in the Mirror are when Anonymous Young Man #1 speaks about the events that took place the day Gavin Cato was killed, Michael S. Miller’s interview, “Heil Hitler,” Anonymous Young Man #2’s interview, “Bad Boy,” Norman Rosenbaum’s “Sixteen Hour Difference,” interview and Carmel Cato’s interview, “Lingering.” When Young Man #1 speaks about Cato’s death, he talks about how the driver was drunk and pretending to be hurt so he could leave the scene on the ambulance. His interview ends with him saying, “ain’t never gonna be no justice.” Whomever’s side the audience is on when it comes to the subject, or whether they believe this setting is the product of problems on both sides, this interview shows the “where” of where the Black community is coming from. Michael S. Miller’s interview talks about how he heard black people saying “Heil Hitler,” at Gavin Cato’s funeral. He said in response to the remarks that he heard that “The hatred is so deep seated, and the hated knows no boundaries.” This showed the audience the tension between the communities, and the extent to which the problems were going. Anonymous Young Man #2’s interview was theatrical because of the underlying things he said. He spoke about the sixteen-year-old boy everyone thought killed Rosenbaum, and said that because he was an athlete that he had no business or reason to kill him. But then he said, “That’s between me and my Creator.” For a moment, this can lead the audience to believe something he either wants us to or that however he knew the sixteen-year-old boy didn’t do it was between himself and God. Norman Rosenbaum’s interview after sixteen hours shows him as calmer, but the theatrical part of this is how he explains how he began to worry about his brother’s safety after what happened to Cato, asking questions like, “Are you sure.” It revealed a human aspect of him that the audience might not catch the first time. Finally, Carmel Cato’s interview has to be the most theatrical, and it is probably why Smith ordered his last of the interviews. His anger as well as his sadness can be either read or seen through Smith’s interpretation on stage. His last words we are able to have from the interview are, “No there’s nothing to hide, you can repeat every word I say.” That suddenly makes it all the more real despite it being reenacted in a play.